The Maharashtra government has cleared forest-land diversion for two projects linked to the Adani Group, involving separate developments in Raigad and Nagpur and subjecting the use of the diverted land to a range of statutory and environmental conditions. 
One of the approvals relates to Adani Cementation Limited’s Raigad Cement Bulk Terminal in Shahapur and Shahbaz villages of Alibag taluka in Raigad district. The project requires 0.6497 hectares of forest land for infrastructure including a berthing jetty, conveyor corridor, backup facilities and an approach road. The approval document records the forest-land diversion as part of the project’s infrastructure requirements. 
The forest diversion for the Raigad project is subject to conditions governing how the land can be used. The legal status of the forest land is to remain unchanged and the area can be used only for the purpose for which approval has been granted. Any transfer of the land to another agency or entity would require prior approval from the Central government. 
The project authority has also been required to undertake compensatory afforestation on degraded reserved forest land. The plantation is to use indigenous species and include rare, endangered and threatened species from the Raigad district, while avoiding monoculture. The project authority is responsible for meeting the associated costs and maintaining the plantation for the prescribed period. 
The approval further requires payment of the applicable Net Present Value (NPV) for the diverted forest land. Any tree felling must be restricted to the minimum necessary and carried out under the supervision of the State Forest Department. 
The conditions also provide for the establishment of a nursery capable of producing at least 5,000 forestry seedlings annually. These are to include bamboo, fruit-bearing, medicinal, ornamental and indigenous species, with a portion to be planted around the project area and the remainder distributed to local residents. 
The Raigad project is also required to comply with the Forest Rights Act, 2006, and obtain Environmental Clearance wherever applicable. Since the project involves a coastal location and mangrove-related considerations, the required Coastal Regulation Zone clearance will also have to be secured. The approval further requires compliance with applicable directions concerning mangrove protection, including the requirement for prior permission from the Bombay High Court wherever mangrove cutting is involved. 
Separately, a July 21, 2025 Maharashtra government order records forest-land diversion for Adani Power Maharashtra Limited’s Gondkhairi Underground Coal Mine project in Kalmeshwar, Nagpur. The order concerns 87.351 hectares of forest land and follows final approval granted by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. 
The Nagpur approval is distinct from the Raigad cement-terminal project and relates to an underground coal-mining development. The state order makes the diversion subject to the conditions prescribed by the Central government and requires compliance to be monitored by the Maharashtra Forest Department. 
Together, the two approvals show the different types of forest-land diversion being processed for Adani Group-linked infrastructure and energy projects in Maharashtra. While the projects are at different locations and serve different purposes, the approvals do not provide unrestricted access to forest land. Their implementation remains tied to environmental safeguards, compensatory measures and statutory compliance. 
For the Raigad project, the next stages will depend on fulfilment of the conditions attached to the forest approval and completion of other applicable permissions. In Nagpur, the Gondkhairi project remains governed by the conditions specified in the state’s diversion order and the corresponding Central approval. 
The clearances therefore represent regulatory progress for the two projects while placing continued responsibility on the respective project authorities and state agencies to ensure that forest-land diversion is implemented strictly within the approved framework. 
Source- GR Maharashtra Govt